Average power rating of opponents played: PITTSBURGH 51, NEW ORLEANS 49.3

SCHEDULE AND RESULTS

PITTSBURGH - Season Results

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Team Stats

Opp Stats

Date

Opponent

Score

SU

Line

ATS

Tot.

O/U

Rushing

Passing

TO

Rushing

Passing

TO

3/23/2013

UTAH

33-64

L

6.5

L

115

U

6-19

19-34-164

3

9-31

17-33-185

1

3/29/2013

JACKSONVILLE

35-61

L

8

L

99.5

U

10-21

19-33-229

4

13-46

26-37-244

0

4/14/2013

@ CHICAGO

14-45

L

10.5

L

100.5

U

15-82

18-36-126

2

9-22

24-36-238

0

4/19/2013

@ NEW ORLEANS

4/28/2013

SAN ANTONIO

5/4/2013

ORLANDO

5/11/2013

@ PHILADELPHIA

5/18/2013

TAMPA BAY

NEW ORLEANS - Season Results

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Team Stats

Opp Stats

Date

Opponent

Score

SU

Line

ATS

Tot.

O/U

Rushing

Passing

TO

Rushing

Passing

TO

3/24/2013

ORLANDO

51-45

W

-1

W

104

U

8-11

18-40-220

1

7-6

25-48-319

2

3/30/2013

IOWA

34-48

L

-3

L

110

U

7-9

23-46-259

3

16-3

15-30-253

2

4/12/2013

@ JACKSONVILLE

30-76

L

12.5

L

105

O

5-18

19-37-233

4

20-52

16-22-177

0

4/19/2013

PITTSBURGH

4/27/2013

SAN JOSE

5/4/2013

@ TAMPA BAY

5/11/2013

@ IOWA

5/17/2013

@ SPOKANE

KEY GAME INFORMATION

PITTSBURGH: Pittsburgh's power stems from its secondary. Coming off a season in which the Power led the Arena Football League in both total defense and pass defense, the team only bolstered its defensive backfield during the offseason, bringing in All-Arena Jack linebacker Alvin Ray Jackson and veteran defensive back Sergio Gilliam to mesh with the franchise's career interceptions leader, Chris LeFlore. Jackson immediately gives Pittsburgh an edge at the Jack position, after snagging 14 interceptions ' more than any Jack in the history of the League ' with the New Orleans VooDoo last season. Meanwhile, Gilliam led the Kansas City Command with six interceptions and LeFlore led the Power with nine interceptions last season. With Gilliam and LeFlore in place, the Power should be more adequately prepared for the potential loss of leading tackler Bryan Williams. On the defensive line, Dominie Pittman was intriguing as a rookie last season. The team will need a big year from him, especially if fellow lineman Anthony Degrate does not return to the squad. The defense will need to be sound if the Power are to earn their first playoff berth in franchise history. On offense, Pittsburgh boasts a number of interesting, yet unproven, options. Pittsburgh's Achilles' heel the last two seasons has been the quarterback position. Coach Derek Stingley hopes to change that this year with the addition of former LSU signal-caller Jordan Jefferson. Though a tremendous talent, Jefferson is still an unproven commodity who will have to beat out fellow rookie Shane Austin and third-year journeyman Steven Sheffield for the job. There will also be an interesting battle at fullback, with last season's starter, Tyre Young, competing for carries with Kirby Griffin ' who took last year off after helping the Jacksonville Sharks to an ArenaBowl championship in 2011 ' and Jason Ford ' who ranks second in Illinois history with 26 career touchdowns. Question marks still remain at the receiver position, however. The franchise's career receiving leader, Mike Washington, returns for a third season as the squad's clear number one target, but the next three receivers on the team's 2012 depth chart all remain free agents. The biggest name on the list is undoubtedly former Ironman of the Year, PJ Berry, who has starred as a receiver and kick return specialist over the last three seasons. The team is also currently without the big play abilities of Oderick Turner and Randy Hymes, who are both unassigned to this point. On the team's current depth chart, the recently acquired Shamar Graves comes in as the second-most experienced wideout on the roster after hauling in 29 passes with the Jacksonville Sharks last season. Though the team is certainly not devoid of talent at the position, bringing in another veteran receiver ' whether a new face or one from last year's squad ' may likely be on the immediate agenda. In the kicking game, Pittsburgh hopes that new acquisition Josh Smith can help the team move up from a dreadful 70 percent conversion rate on extra-point attempts last season. Coach Stingley insists this will be a very interesting training camp for Pittsburgh and with plenty of talented, yet unproven options, Power fans will want to stay tuned during the month of March.

NEW ORLEANS: Last season was a big year for the VooDoo, as the team snapped a 12-game home losing streak dating back to 2008 and made the playoffs for the first time since 2004. Much of the resurgence can be credited to head coach Pat O'Hara and his quarterback Kurt Rocco. Rocco made great strides in his first season in New Orleans, setting single-season franchise records with 5,317 passing yards and 107 touchdowns. If that progress continues, there will be plenty of cheering in 'The Graveyard' this season. However, the VooDoo will have some obstacles to overcome. On the offensive side of the ball, Rocco will be without three of his four favorite targets from a year ago, as Josh Bush, L.J. Castile and Greg Ellingson all found new homes in free agency. On the plus side, the team did acquire former All-Arena receiver Donovan Morgan in an offseason trade. The offense will depend heavily on Morgan's experience and playmaking ability to pick up the slack for the departed talent. O'Hara's squad will need players to step up on the defensive side as well. New Orleans lost two 2012 All-Arena selections in free agency, as Jack linebacker Alvin Ray Jackson relocated to Pittsburgh, while defensive back Jeremy Kellem joined up with the defending ArenaBowl champion Arizona Rattlers. The additions of Eddie Moten, Derrick Boyd and Dustin Bell, as well as 2012 holdover Demarcus Robinson and a wildcard in former LSU recruit Delvin Breaux, should assist in softening the blow dealt to the secondary. With so many new faces, the group that could be the biggest difference makers is the defensive line, a youthful unit that showed dramatic improvement upon the acquisition of Xavier Brown last season. If Brown, Marlon Favorite and Derandus Frye continue to progress in their sophomore campaigns, the VooDoo will be in good shape. Opposing quarterbacks, however, may not be